The latest environment news from The Texas Tribune.
Cities and nonprofits are using a variety of strategies to keep unhoused people warm. But some organizations warn they’re already at capacity as El Paso sends migrants across the state. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott and other leaders say Texans should protect their homes and vehicles as large portions of the state will experience dangerously cold temperatures. Full Story
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“A year like this, where everything is disaster, is just, I’d say, devastating,” cotton farmer Steven Walker said. Full Story
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The reversal follows a challenge by Earthjustice and Gulf Coast community groups alleging flaws in the corps’ environmental review of Matagorda and Lavaca bays. Full Story
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The U.S. Chemical Safety Board found that TPC Group LLC failed to identify problem areas where dangerous chemicals might cause explosions and didn’t implement a safety recommendation that could have prevented the blast. Full Story
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The Electric Reliability Council of Texas expects sufficient electricity generation as much of the state will plunge into frigid temperatures. Full Story
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Oil and gas companies are increasingly reusing “produced water” as West Texas aquifers are being depleted and the practice of injecting wastewater into disposal wells triggers more earthquakes. Full Story
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At a senate committee hearing in Marshall, Texas Republican lawmakers accused investment firms of pulling back on fossil fuels, running afoul of a 2021 law that prohibits the state from contracting with or investing in companies that “boycott” oil, natural gas and coal companies. Full Story
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Rural communities face compounding reasons they can’t improve their water infrastructure, including inflation and a lack of human resources. Full Story
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The report confirms a ProPublica and Texas Tribune investigation that found the privately built fencing could collapse during major flooding. The federal government resisted making the findings public for more than a year. Full Story
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For more than 24 hours, nearly everyone in the nation’s fourth-most-populous city had been asked to boil water after a power outage at a water treatment plant Sunday. Full Story
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Many residents in the nation’s fourth-most-populous city heard that they couldn’t drink tap water from friends or neighbors, not from City Hall. Full Story
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Millions of Houston residents are expected to be under a boil water notice until Tuesday after a power outage at a water treatment plant. At least four school districts canceled Monday classes. Full Story
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Zavalla lost all water for several days. The Texas Department of Emergency Management has sent pallets of bottled water and a team to help. Full Story
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As the state’s environmental agency weighs new pollution limits on the plants, several lawmakers have filed bills that would put new restrictions on the facilities, which spew pollutants into mostly low-income neighborhoods. Full Story
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Deepwater terminals proposed for the Gulf of Mexico will fuel oil output and export growth despite the Biden administration promises of steep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. Full Story
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The group that reviews the effectiveness of state agencies recommended several changes to how the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality operates. Full Story
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Texas voters cast their ballots Tuesday with a wide variety of issues on their minds, including the state’s grid and the Uvalde shooting. Full Story
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Downtowns are deserted, hospitals are closing, teachers are leaving. Every part of life in rural Texas is harder — but it’s worth saving. Full Story
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Concerns over ecological damage to Corpus Christi Bay have delayed plans to convert sea water to drinking water for years in this booming Gulf Coast city, where environmentalists see water supply as a “chokehold” to block new fossil fuel infrastructure. Full Story
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